Chapter 56 - Murasaki Oni?

While the trio of two humans and a black cat ambled through the alley, the black cat looked down at Jin and said, "Your wounds got worse again."

"Hm. Yeah. I'll recover soon, though," Jin casually replied.

Hiratsuka frowned and asked, "You're hurt? Was it from your battle earlier?"

Jin raised a brow, but then chuckled and answered, "No. I got a few injuries from some other adventures."

"Do you need to see a doctor?"

"Not yet, considering supernatural abilities make you a lot more sturdy, but I know a good doctor if necessary."

Hiratsuka didn't look convinced, but she didn't retort further, either.

Not long later, Jin brought Hiratsuka before Urahara, who didn't look particularly amused this time around. After Jin explained the situation and his intentions in gathering a few people who could handle things for him whenever he was busy, the guy examined Hiratsuka again with a small probe of Reiatsu. The pressure made her turn stiff like a log. Eventually, Urahara sighed and pressed his hat a little further down on his head.

"Do whatever you want with her. However, keep in mind that taking her under your wing will require you to keep her within the range of your operations at all times since she does not have notable abilities like you. She'll also need to learn how to hide her own Reiatsu."

"I'm aware. Is it okay if I try to train her downstairs?"

"Sure. Just don't do anything unsavory. Save that for your own home," Urahara joked, quickly erasing his serious demeanor.

Ignoring the comment that garnered a slightly dropped jaw from Hiratsuka, Jin replied, "I'll use the Study Chamber for a bit, then. Do you mind helping me out with teaching, Yoruichi-san? I'm sure you'd be better at it than me. I'll return the favor later."

"Well, I'm bored at the moment, so sure."

For the next hour or so, Jin taught Hiratsuka about Reishi. Unfortunately, he quickly realized that because he controlled energy on an almost instinctive level, he struggled to teach the young woman anything aside from the basic power structure of Reishi. Yoruichi ended up doing most of the detailed teaching in his place. She reminded him multiple times that she would cash in a good reward in exchange for this favor a handful of times, which made him roll his eyes since her tone made it seem more like a joke than a serious comment.

By the end of the hour, Hiratsuka finally learned how to consciously suppress the small amount of Reiatsu leaking from her soul.

"That didn't take as long as I thought it would," Jin commented, rubbing his chin.

Still seated on Jin's head, Yoruichi observed Hiratsuka a bit longer before saying, "This is only a stopgap measure. The moment she stops consciously suppressing her Reiatsu, it'll leak again. For example, if she falls asleep, it'll leak. If she were just a soul, Kisuke would have a Gigai to help with that. He is working on something for Kurosaki Ichigo's friends that could help with that, but it will take at least a few days for him to finish that, I think."

Hiratsuka furrowed her brows at the unfamiliar terms whereas Jin rested his chin on his palm and replied, "We'll make do for now. I'm pretty sure I can handle any hollow below the level of a Menos, so it should be fine for a few days. I'd like to train her to become a Fullbringer, though. Think that'd be possible?"

"Maybe. That's always a matter of chance as far as I know."

"What's a Fullbringer?" Hiratsuka asked.

"A human who manifests supernatural ability due to contact with hollows. Due to your situation, I wouldn't be surprised if you have such an ability dormant within you now," Jin explained.

"Can I learn that?!"

"It's generally more of a trauma-induced thing," Yoruichi answered, subsequently finding amusement in the young woman's disappointed expression.

Distracted by a notification on his phone, Jin checked it and saw his alarm ringing. As such, he stood up from his cross-legged position and said, "For now, I have an appointment. Do you mind staying at my place for a few days so I can prevent more hollows from attacking you, Hiratsuka-sensei?"

"Eh? Stay at your house?!"

"Sensei? Is she your teacher or something?"

"Yes, and sort of. She's a new teacher at my school, but not my teacher specifically."

"Well isn't that a drama waiting to happen," Yoruichi replied with a soft chuckle.

Focusing on Hiratsuka instead of Yoruichi's comment, Jin asked, "So does that work for you? My parents definitely wouldn't mind, and it'd only be for a few days."

"..."

"If not, I can figure something else out."

"It's not that… I might lose my job if I did that…" Hiratsuka said while nibbling on her thumb.

"That's an unnecessary worry. Give it a few years, and I doubt you'll care about what other faculty think about your actions."

"...I guess that'll work then."

"I'll run it by my mother while talking to her later. Want me to drop you off at your house to pack stuff first?"

"My bike is at your house, so just take me there."

Settling everything as is, Jin, Yoruichi, and Hiratsuka went back upstairs. On the way out, Urahara stopped Jin by grabbing his shoulder and quietly spoke to him in a voice low enough that others could not hear.

"Gathering a few people is fine, but not too many."

"I'll assume you've figured out my intentions."

Narrowing his eyes, Urahara replied, "Not all of it, but there are things we need to discuss when you come back again."

"Sure. I'll be back later tonight," Jin replied seriously.

"Alright. See ya later, then," Urahara said, switching back to his lazy shopkeeper persona.

Keeping the man's words in mind, Jin silently drove Hiratsuka back to his house. He occasionally answered a few more of her questions about supernatural things along the way.

After dropping her off, Jin drove to the nearby family cafe. He parked in the parking spot furthest from the door. While walking toward the cafe, he checked his phone. He read a mail from his mother saying that she was on her way and that he should save them a table. Other than that, he noticed that Jellal had sent over the healing scrolls, which he made a mental note to use before meeting Konan later.

The moment Jin entered the restaurant, he looked around with a raised brow. The place looked a bit different from how he remembered it. Then again, it had been a few years since he last came here with his family.

Due to the jingling bell above his head, a young woman wearing frilly waitress attire looked over and greeted him with a wide smile. She had light brown hair and dark brown eyes. The friendliness she displayed didn't look forced or faked in the least. However, since she was on her way to help another family visiting the cafe, a young chubby man wearing thick glasses asked whether Jin came for the bar or to eat. At Jin's answer, the young man pointed out an open table to him.

Shortly after Jin sat down, he felt like he was being watched. Narrowing his eyes, he turned and searched for the source. His eyes quickly met the eyes of a man leaning on the bar counter. The man wore a white button-up shirt and a black apron. Curly black hair hung down the middle of his forehead and also behind his head in a ponytail. One of his brown eyes winked at Jin in a flirtatious manner.

Frowning deeply, Jin wrinkled his nose and dug into the menu to distract himself. Thankfully, his mother arrived seconds later to save him from the uncomfortable gaze. However, something unexpected occurred the moment she stepped through the door.

"Eh?! The Murasaki Oni?!" The man behind the counter exclaimed with wide eyes.

Jin's mother froze on the spot. A strange atmosphere followed, prompting an uncanny silence throughout the cafe. Eyes twitching, she slowly turned her head toward the man.

"...What did you just say? You seem to have misspoken, young man."

"Eep! Yes ma'am. Don't mind me and please enjoy a meal on the house!"

"I'll pay. Just be quiet and let me eat in peace."

"Yes, ma'am."

Jin blinked. In all his eighteen years of life within this world, he had never heard his mother use such an intimidating tone of voice.

'What the hell, mom?'

~~~~~~~~~~

(A/N: Have the day off from work today, so gonna do a 48 hour writing spree to stock up on chaps. Yay.)